The woman took a big noisy gulp of air and followed it with a high-pitched scream. She kicked again and made Flynn lose his hold on her. Without his support, she lost her balance and slipped back in the water. Flynn fished her out quickly by the scruff of her neck.
“Mrs. Voinovich! Just listen to me!” Flynn was yelling now. “There’s a small platform you can stand on and rest your feet… And hang on to that rope handle next to your head.”
The woman went quiet again. Her panic attack had subsided. She followed Flynn’s instructions, like a helpless little child.
“There! Well done,” Flynn said, reassuringly. “Just relax now and we’ll be safely down in no time, alright.” He yanked the hose a few times, and the bell started to descend. The air inside remained fresh, allowing Flynn and Mrs. Voinovich to breathe normally. Tony and Madison were doing a great job, Flynn thought, grateful for having them above him. He waited a little, then fumbled with his torch and switched it on. The light flooded the bell’s domed roof, making Mrs. Voinovich blink a few times. Her eyes darted back and forth, checking out her surroundings.
“It’s OK. Nothing to worry about!” Flynn grinned. “It’s like going down in an elevator, except… it’s underwater!”
Unfortunately, instead of reassuring the woman, his words had the opposite effect… Mrs. Voinovich grabbed onto the handle with both hands and closed her eyes, frozen in terror again. Flynn felt sorry for her, but there was nothing he could do… He shrugged and leaned back against the plastic walls of his bell. A moment later, the bell jerked and came to a stop. It had reached the end of the line. Flynn knew this had been the easy part of the dive… The next phase was going to be much harder. He put his goggles back on, took one quick look at the woman’s petrified face, and dived down, leaving her inside the bell.
It took him a second to get his bearings… His bell was hanging about thirty feet above the bottom and the Power Plant. There were several lights placed along its walls, making it easier to see in the darkness. Flynn saw another diving bell, already there next to his, glowing like a lantern in the dark. The light inside moved down, and a moment later, Duncan Roth shot out from under the bell, followed closely by two figures. Flynn watched as Duncan led them down to a well-concealed gap in the Power Plant’s wall. Flynn would have missed it if he was on his own! Glancing up, he saw Pharrell’s bell descending and hurried back inside his.
Mrs. Voinovich was exactly as Flynn had left her, eyes shut tight, knuckles white from squeezing the handle. “We’ll have to do some more diving, now,” Flynn said, trying to sound cheerful, “…so hold your breath… as long as you can.”
Mrs. Voinovich’s eyes shot open and stared at him, wide with terror. She shook her head and closed them back tightly.
“Look…” Flynn said, “I… don’t want to drag you down again… but I will.”
Her eyes opened again and she nodded her head slowly… Flynn noticed that her lips had turned a dark shade of purple.
“All you’ve got to do is hold me round my waist… Do you think you can do that?”
Mrs. Voinovich swallowed hard then nodded again.
“Good!” Flynn turned around. “And try not to strangle me, alright.”
Slowly, she let go of the handle and clasped her arms around his middle.
“One last thing… You’ll feel some pressure in your ears. Just pinch your nose and blow with your mouth closed, OK?”
With Mrs. Voinovich now pressed tight against his back, Flynn dove under the bell. Her added weight helped him go down a lot faster. Soon, Flynn could see the opening in the wall, and swam straight for it. Just as he was about to enter, a strong beam of light blinded him. Flynn had to back up and let Duncan glide out. He gave Flynn the thumbs up sign and swam past him in a flash. Although this had been a small delay, Flynn could feel Mrs. Voinovich’s arms now tightening around his neck. She was running out of oxygen fast, and Flynn knew it. He kicked his feet and went through the hole, starting his ascend up a narrow chimney-like space.
There was a faint orange glow some twenty feet above him. Not far, but he knew he had to hurry. Swimming straight up, Flynn could feel the weight of Mrs. Voinovich now and the strain on all his muscles. They were almost there, only a few feet away from the light, when Mrs. Voinovich started trashing on his back… Flynn knew that the poor woman would open her mouth… take that dreaded involuntary breath… and fill her lungs with water… Flynn kicked his feet with all his strength, his powerful strokes breaking the surface with seconds to spare.
There was a loud gasp from behind him, as Mrs. Voinovich sucked in a huge gulp of air and began to cough. That was too damn close, Flynn thought, as he filled his screaming lungs with air. It was stale, but breathable enough. Flynn looked around and spotted a large floating deck to his left. Two people were lying on it, soaking wet and shivering. They were Duncan’s first charges and were glad to see Flynn swimming toward them. The two helped Mrs. Voinovich onto the platform then hoisted Flynn up. While they tended to Mrs. Voinovich, Flynn took a little break to get his bearings. He was in some kind of a large round shaft space, and although he had found air pockets in submerged buildings before, they were never as big as this. Flynn looked up and could see no ceiling. The shaft continued up and up, until its walls turned to black. He wondered if this was one of the four giant smokestacks of the Power Plant… Flynn studied his surroundings more carefully. The deck was moored next to a rusty staircase, leading up to a heavy metal door. There was an oil lamp burning above the door, the only source of light in the shaft. Flynn looked back at Mrs. Voinovich who now seemed fine, despite the cold.
“Thank you,” she said and smiled weakly at Flynn. “Hope the next one down treats you better.”
“You did great, Mrs. Voinovich,” Flynn said and slid back into the water.
“Well done everyone!” Duncan Roth had just finished doing his final head count. No one was missing from the Departure List. They were all huddled together on the floating deck now. Exhausted and freezing, but alive! He stood above them on the rusty staircase, water dripping from his tall frame, not showing even the slightest sign of being cold or tired.
Duncan looked like he had just come back from a leisurely swim, thought Flynn. They had all performed numerous dives, but Duncan had done the most. Flynn was more than impressed by his stamina and endurance…. The man had surprised him repeatedly in the past hour, and was continuing to do so… Unlike Duncan, Flynn was on the verge of collapsing from exhaustion… The dives had finally taken their toll… He could barely stand on his feet. Flynn had lost count of how many people he had ferried down. His last two trips had been to bring Tony and Madison. Now, they were all waiting to see what Duncan had in store for them next.
“I don’t think he brought us here just to show us this air pocket,” Madison whispered. “There must be more to this…”
Flynn had to agree with her.
“Please, come with me,” said Duncan, as if he had read their minds.
He was making his way up the flight of rusty stairs. Emotionally and physically drained, everybody had fallen silent again. No questions were asked. One by one, they all started up the stairs and followed Duncan through the heavy metal door at the top of the landing. Flynn and Madison were right behind him, both eager to find out where he was taking them.
The man led them down a dark corridor, up more flights of stairs and then into another corridor. The thick walls were made of solid concrete. There were cracks everywhere, and all surfaces were streaked with rusty stains from the metal fixtures running above their heads. Corroded pipes, broken electrical boxes and torn cables littered the floor.